Consumer of Souls
by You'llNeverKnow1212
Summary: After yet another attack on six year old Uzumaki Naruto, he unlocks an ancient ability thought to be lost generations ago. He is the sixth warrior, destined for greatness among shinobi. The only thing on his mind, however, is revenge. Konoha will learn that everything has a price, and theirs is much too high to pay off. Uzumaki Naruto always collects his debts.


Pain.

One would think the shivering, malnourished child would have been used to it by now, what with it having pretty much defined his life up until this point. This didn't change the fact that his jerky movements were as frantic as ever as he ran from the ever-present mob of villagers, from he lowest riff-raff to the highest level shinobi. It was a chase the frightened boy was well acquainted with, having experienced such hostility almost everyday during the short six years of his life.

Panting as he ran, the boy ran in desperation, turning his head back as he rounded a corner, only to find the mob closer than ever. Distracted as he was, there was no way for him to avoid the rock that happened to sit in the middle of the road, or to stop his impact with the cold, unforgiving ground. And just like that, they were on him, like animals closing in for the kill.

The pain was still there, not dulled in the least. If anything, it was sharper than it had seemed on his fifth birthday. Once the 'revenge' started, the kid knew his screams wouldn't stop until his soul had left his body.

The shinobi arrived first. What the boy had once looked up to were now his greatest enemies. He hated ninjas with every ounce of his being. Unfortunately for him, it didn't mean a thing to those who hated Uzumaki Naruto, or as they saw it, the demon in Naruto's body, because they were the ones who were strong. They were the ones that held the power.

What Naruto wouldn't give to hold power. He would _kill _for it.

The leader, a man with a gecko mask, walked up to the boy, roughly grabbing his matted blond hair and yanking it back, forcing him to stare up into the face of his attacker.

"Thought you would get away, did you demon?" the man said in a tone of amusement, barely covering the hatred lacing his every word. Suddenly, he let out a snarl, banging Naruto's head into the tree behind him. To his credit, the kid didn't make a sound, much to the shinobi's disappointment. But then again, this was just the beginning.

By now, even the fattest and laziest of civilians had caught up. One of them, a smelly pig of a man, with a potbelly that preceded him by at least a foot wherever he went stepped up, eager to avenge his family.

"Planned on celebrating the sixth year since your rampage?" the man yelled, shaking his fist. The words had no affect on Naruto; the flying spittle emanating in ridiculous volumes from the ruffian's maw did. He jerked back from the ANBU still in front of him, only to find the tree blocking his escape.

Deluded as he may have been, the ninja was no pushover. Before Naruto could so much as blink, a kunai had been launched into his left shoulder, slicing clear through the flesh and bone until it was firmly embedded in the wooden trunk behind him. An involuntary scream escaped his lips, body trembling in pain, fear, and rage.

Then it began for real. After the mob had their fill of taunting and threatening, it was a free-for-all stab-fest. A civilian hefted his rusty pitchfork in front of him, and with a grunt, sent it deep into the boy's thigh. His body wracking with pain, the only thing keeping Naruto on his feet was the kunai that remained in his shoulder.

From their, the blows and injuries blurred into a never ending cycle of pain and suffering. Having gone in shock from blood loss, Naruto watched with half-dead eyes as his body was torn apart in front of him. Finally, after at least half an hour, a pink haired civilian woman stepped up to deal the killing blow. Her green eyes shone in malice as she stepped before the 'demon' brat.

"TODAY THE BRAVE SOULS SACRIFICED FOR KONOHA SHALL BE AVENGED!" The sheer volume of her screech could have raised the dead. As such, Naruto stirred feebly, even the minimal motion causing him to almost black out.

"Do it Haruno-san!"

"Kill the demon!"

"The senile old man sitting in the Hokage's tower can't tell us what to do! We were the ones who paid the price against the Kyuubi, and we will collect what is due!" shouted yet another doddering old fool who had obviously done nothing but cower as the Yondaime sacrificed his life to seal Kyuubi into his son.

The pink haired witch seemed to revel in the attention, however. She pulled out a tanto from withing her robes, and with yet another unbearable scream, stabbed it through Naruto's stomach so hard it's tip almost severed his spine.

Time seemed to slow down. The idiots around the tortured boy celebrated as they saw his body shudder one last time and his eyes closed, seemingly for the last time. To make sure the job was done however, a medic-nin walked up and checked for a pulse. After a minute, he stood up from his position bent over the boy and exclaimed, "He's almost dead, but there's still a pulse."

The shouts died almost instantaneously, and the Haruno growled in fury. She grabbed the hilt of the tanto and twisted it violently, burying it almost an inch deeper, effectively ripping the boy's intestines to shreds as well as displacing a spinal disc. A minute later, the boy was proclaimed dead.

Satisfied with a job well done, the crowd decided to go home and celebrate the liberation of Konoha from the beast, once and for all.

* * *

Meanwhile, Naruto found himself from being on the verge of death to being knee-deep in water. Coughing, he straightened up from the hunched over position he had been in as the 'killing' blow had been delivered. Amazingly, it seemed that he was free of any injury.

The boy was broken from his thoughts by the sudden realization that he was not alone in his surroundings. Which happened to be very similar to the sewer he had once hid in for 3 days after his fifth birthday. Anyways, not five feet away from him was a huge cage. It was too dark to make out what was imprisoned within its bars, but Naruto, while young, was no fool. He knew that nobody made cages without the intention of keeping something in them.

After a few moments of silence, however, Naruto mustered up the courage to step closer. He noticed a piece of paper stuck on the bars of the cage, with what seemed to be a seal array on it. Naruo was well acquainted with the kanji on the Hokage's security seals, having been taken there by the ANBU whenever they had to save him from one crazy villager or another, but he had never seen such a complex array as this one.

Unfortunately, his fascination proved to be short-lived due to what he saw while staring at the seal. Or more specifically, what he saw in the darkness behind the seal. Suddenly, illuminating the dark sewer with crimson light, two bright red eyes materialized in the cage. They were like pools of blood almost hypnotizing, yet terrifying.

**"Come closer," **came a growl. Slowly, Naruto began to make out the outline of a huge fox, swirling with orange energy - what was it called again... chakra. After all, Naruto's greatest ambition had once been to become the greatest shinobi who ever lived, so he knew the basics. Of course, that was back before he figured out that all shinobi were just glorified thugs, and before he realized that half of his attackers were ninja themselves.

Frightened as he was, nothing in the world could have made Naruto take another step closer to the cage. The being within it suddenly reared up, the air around it shimmering with it's foul chakra. A huge claw, with a hooked end that looked as if it would have no trouble bisecting a human body shot forward with the momentum of a rocket. Watching it approach, Naruto knew there was no way for him to avoid it.

Unexpectedly however, the claw came to an abrupt stop less than three inches from the boy's chest. The monstrosity growled in frustration, retracting his limb into the cage. **"Damned seal! I will have your soul pathetic human!"**

Curiosity overcoming his fear, Naruto decided it was time to get some questions answered. "Where am I? And who are you?"

The fox could have rolled his eyes. His stupid container was _just now_ asking the two most obvious questions possible in this situation? It was bad enough that he was stuck in a weak human, but to be trapped in an idiot as well was just too much to bear. Deciding to humor him for the moment, he answered anyways, **"I am the mighty Nine-Tails Demon Fox, the Kyuubi no Kitsune! Bow before me, puny human!"** When Naruto made no move to do so, he continued anyways. **"And if you haven't figured it out by now, I believe we are in your mindscape."**

Trying to process this information, the only thing Naruto could say was, "Why the heck does my mind look like a sewer?"

**"I believe it is because you are the dumbest creature I have ever come in contact with, including other humans," **the Kyuubi deadpanned.

Naruto didn't know what scared him more, the fact that an animal, given an animal with nine tails and made entirely of demonic chakra that could probably raze Konoha to the ground instantly, but still an animal, was calling him stupid, or that said fox was trying to be sarcastic. He decided to file away the 'raze Konoha to the ground' part for later. Then it struck him. _'The Nine-Tails Demon Fox? This is the reason I have been hated for my whole life. This is why I have been in more near-death experiences than years in my life.'_ Then, he came to a realization. _'This is the key to my revenge. Now I just have to figure out how to take his power for myself.'_

"Give me your power, fox." Being a six year old boy with little to no normal social interaction during his day to day life, it must be noted that tact was not one of Naruto's stronger points. Of course, Kyuubi's answer was not surprising.

**"You would command me? The almighty Kyuubi ordered around by you - a sniveling little human who can't last a week without being almost killed?" **The Kyuubi seemed to snort in disdain. **"I don't think so. You, pathetic mortal, will never achieve a fraction of my power." **Naruto narrowed his eyes. He had overheard of the demon fox that had almost destroyed Konoha before, and of it's almost immeasurable power. Of course, he never knew he was it's container, but at this point, he couldn't care less. Young and somewhat naive he may have been, but even Naruto was not so dumb so as to think of overpowering the Kyuubi, even in his own mindscape.

But now, Naruto had nothing to lose. If he was destroyed by the Kyuubi, it was no worse than failing to harness it's power and dying at the hands of the villagers instead. Thinking this over, Naruto decided to try and persuade the Kyuubi. "If I die today, you'll die with me."

Instead of getting the reaction he was expecting, however, the demon fox only let out a rumbling laugh, shaking the very ground Naruto stood on. **"I am a manifestation of pure chakra, human! As if one as great as I would die just because of the likes of you!" **Here he paused, apparently thinking. **"But it is true that your death - while it would please me greatly, would disperse my chakra throughout the world, and it could take thousands of years to transform. Well, I don't feel like waiting around for that to happen, so I'm just going to take control instead."**

Those words weren't exactly reassuring. "What do you mean, I'm not going to let you control me!" Naruto bristled at the very thought. _Nobody_ would take away his plans for revenge.

The demon just chuckled again, seemingly enjoying causing pain to it's jailor. **"What are you going to do to stop me?" **it asked gleefully. **"Nothing, that's what. You'll just be forced to watch as I take control of your body and finish what I started." **As expected, the threat on Konoha did little to elicit any feeling from Naruto. However, Kyuubi hadn't just sat around for six years in Naruto's body without learning about what would make his container tick. **"And then, I'll slowly kill all the villagers that tortured you, with you being able to do nothing but watch from the background."**

These words certainly had an effect on Naruto, who growled, "Shut up!" _He_ was the important one here, not the stupid fox, who could rot in its cage for eternity for all he cared. The Kyuubi's power, however, would be his, and his alone. At his wit's end, Naruto had no choice anymore. "You will give me your power, or I will take it myself!"

Kyuubi didn't laugh this time. Having such a lowly being try to order it around really struck a nerve. **"Your time is up. I take the reigns from here."**

As soon as this sentence was complete, Naruto saw the beast's red chakra coming off of it's body and heading towards him. His brain screamed at his muscles to move, but he was frozen in place, unable to shift an inch. Petrified, he could only watch as the chakra began to enter his body.

The chakra may have looked bad, but coming into contact with it was a hundred times worse. It burned like fire, searing his insides as it traveled up his body to his brain. The boy crumpled to his knees as the wave of pain reached his head, where it felt like his head was being sliced open. He tried to do something, anything, but he couldn't think, what with it feeling as if he was being roasted from the inside out. Finally he could bear it no more, falling forwards and clutching his head, moaning, "Make it stop!" _  
_

Through a haze of pain, he could see the Kyuubi standing with it's head up against the bars, almost seeming to grin at the turn of events. Desperation welled up within him. How could his ambitions have been crushed so easily? How could he die without collecting Konoha's debt?

His thoughts sputtered out as the world swirled around him and then faded away.

**(Kyuubi's POV)**

Finally, after years of waiting, the escape to freedom he had so longed for was at hand. Nobody would be able to stop him now. Of course, that's what he had said the last time too, but he had been tricked, by none other than the foolish humans he hated. He was still disgusted with himself for that.

But this time, he was ready. Smirking to himself as he saw his container being taken care of, the only thing left to do was to wait until the job was done. At the rate it was going, it would take only a couple of minutes more, at the most. He watched the boy collapse on the ground, disturbing the scummy water on the floor as he did. **_'Why did I have to get stuck in such a weak brat, even by human_ standards?'** Well, it didn't matter anymore. Or at least wouldn't in five minutes, if all went according to plan.

Kyuubi was broken out of his musings when he noticed the absence of the boy's thrashing. Looking out through the gates at the still body, he decided it was time to act. Now that his chakra had taken over the human's body, he could control him from the inside, and effectively make him do what he wanted him to. This was necessary, of course, because the stupid seal on the bars was still active, so it wasn't as if he could come outside himself.

Animating the limp body, he made it stand up straight and walk over to the cage. It almost seemed as if the boy was walking towards him of his own will, except for the fact that his eyes were closed the whole time. He made the body stop when it reached the bars. He was tempted to make it walk through the bars and crush the boy for what he had put him through, but unfortunately, there were several flaws in that plan that far outweighed the temporary satisfaction that came with it. First, he would be stuck in the seal forever, with nobody to take it off. Second, he wouldn't be able to use the human's body to release himself in the real world. And third, he wouldn't be able to make the insolent fool suffer by being forced to watch his opportunity at redemption slip away, slowly. Yes, he intended to stick to that plan very closely.

But just when he was about to make the boy rip off the seal, something caught his eye that made him pause. On the child's neck was a round mark, seemingly dormant at the moment, but the very fact it had appeared when it hadn't been visible a moment before showed that it was about to activate.

But something just didn't make sense. **_'How could this be the sixth? All he's shown so far is his complete incompetence!'_** It angered Kyuubi that though he was so close to his goal, his plans might be shot down any moment now. With a growl, the demon fox steeled his resolve. **_'It matters not. I'll end this before it even starts!' _**

Just as he enforced his will upon his container to rip off the fluttering paper that bound him to his prison, he noticed something was wrong. There was resistance to his command, and the boy's hand was moving more and more sluggishly. With a growl, the Kyuubi redoubled his efforts. Slowly, inch by inch, the hand traveled until Naruto stood poised to get rid of the pesky seal, once and for all.

The demon paused for a second to relish what was about to come, to pause and savor the taste of sweet victory. That split second hesitation was all it took to bring those dreams crashing down, and would continue to haunt him for the remainder of his time in his prison.

**(Naruto's POV)**

Naruto's eyes, which until this point had remained closed, snapped open. This, though surprising in itself, was not entirely unexpected, as he had always proved rather stubborn and strong-willed. What was surprising, however, was the fact that his eyes, normally icy blue, were now a dark gray with black lines spidering across them, like the cracks in his leaky roof that Naruto looked up at whenever he went to bed.

The fox drew back, looking almost apprehensive for a second, before seeming to decide that the boy was still no threat to him and roaring in fury. It was separated from it's container by nothing except 6 inch metal bars and a piece of paper. While it would never actually kill its container, at least without assurance that it would survive the event, the fox wouldn't hesitate to incapacitate Naruto. Permanently.

Baring it's serrated fangs, the fox pushed it's enormous head against the bars, so that it's nose was separated from Naruto's face by mere inches. As it opened it's mouth - to say or do what will never be known - Naruto, in what looked like a trance like state simply reached his right hand through the bars and stuck his fingers in it's eyes, sinking them deep into the viscous substance. Even through the dim light of the sewer, the same black lines that appeared in his eyes could be seen threading across his arms into the tips of his fingers.

The beast screamed in pain and naturally tried to back away, but found itself unable to budge its mighty limbs. Youkai began to flow from it's body through the lines on the boy's arms until eventually the fox faded into nothing.

It was not dead, not even close. Even Naruto was not so delusional. But it wouldn't be bothering him for a long time.

The black channels of chakra, glowing red as the last of the energy was absorbed, reverted to the original black before fading out altogether. The gray eyes turned back to their normal blue.

Flexing his arms, Naruto felt powerful. The feeling - it was _elating. _

And for the first time since he had experienced the hateful villagers wrath, Uzumaki Naruto smiled. The path was clear.


End file.
